A proposal to reduce student workloads during dead week passed in the Faculty Senate Oct. 10 by a vote of 19-6.
The proposal originally called for a total ban on exams and quizzes during dead week, but was amended. Now, quizzes worth no more than 3 percent or assignments worth no more than 10 percent of a student's total class grade may be assigned during that time.
Additionally, no exams will be permitted during dead week. Lab classes, classes that meet one night a week, classes with no university scheduled final exam date and graduate classes are not covered by the policy.
"I was shocked it passed at all, to be honest," Student Government Association Chief of Staff Tim Crisp said. "I don't want to sound cynical, but I didn't feel like it was going to pass."
SGA President Daniel Pae said he was also surprised at the margin by which the proposal passed.
"This is not a new issue; it's been dealt with by past SGA's for over a decade now," Pae said. "As someone pointed out to me, they said, 'I've seen this crash and burn several times.'"
Pae said students have complained to him about the stress of dead week, and that they often find themselves learning new material for classes when their finals are just around the corner.
"Ultimately, the goal is for every student to learn and grow in knowledge, and often times students feel they're cramming, more so than learning," Pae said. "We wanted to break away from that mentality and really focus on making the pre-finals week more accessible and less burdensome for students, which I think these new reforms will accomplish."
No dead week changes will be seen this fall, as the proposal still needs approval from Provost Kyle Harper and OU President David Boren. Pae said the changes will take effect in the next spring semester.
This article was updated at 11:40 a.m., Oct. 11 to clarify the specific details of the reform.
